Entries in USTA
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August 5, 2010: The U.S. Tennis Assn. has signed a deal with online-based auto insurance company Esurance to become an official sponsor of the 2010 U.S. Open. The 2010 U.S. Open will be played Aug. 30-Sept. 12 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, NY.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Esurance is a subsidiary of White Mountains Insurance Group, Ltd. and is headquartered in San Francisco.

USTA said the alliance would include on-site presence and ring signage in Arthur Ashe Stadium, a booth on the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, media support of tournament TV broadcasts and a presence on the official Web site of the U.S. Open.

In addition, Esurance will support the U.S. Open's Green program by sponsoring distribution of New York City Subway MetroCards at select times during the two-week tournament. The USTA said it has a wide-ranging green program at the US Open, "one component of which is to encourage attendees to take mass transit to the competition."

"From the very start, we've worked hard to make Esurance a green company and the bigger we grow, the more important this objective becomes," Gary Tolman, president and CEO for Esurance, said in a statement. "We are proud to partner with the USTA, an organization which shares our commitment to increasing awareness about the small things each of us can do to help protect our environment for years to come. We look forward to an exciting tournament this year from some of the top names in tennis."

Esurance said it plans to add a US Open "official sponsor" tag to its current TV campaign. Esurance said the campaign would run during CBS Sports broadcasts of the U.S. Open over Labor Day Weekend and during the Finals Weekend, as well as on the Tennis Channel throughout the tournament. The US Open also is broadcast on ESPN2.

"We are pleased to work with an innovative company like Esurance, whose support of the U.S. Open will reach fans on-site, online, and on television," Harlan Stone, chief business and marketing officer for the USTA, said in a statement. "We are especially grateful for their support of our US Open green programs. The programs have become one of our most successful initiatives in recent years, and have substantially reduced the overall carbon footprint of the tournament."

Other marketing partners of the 2010 US Open include Chase, IBM, Citizen, Mercedes-Benz, Olympus, AMEX, Continental Airlines, Heineken, Evian and Canon.